State Police PBA wants to keep Attica testimony confidential

New York State Troopers PBA President Thomas H. Mungeer on Friday urged a State Supreme Court in Wyoming County to keep testimony about the deadly Attica riot of 1971 under seal.

The PBA filed a motion to block release of Volumes 2 and 3 of the Meyer Report about the heavily investigated Attica Correctional Facility tragedies.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is trying to bring about release of the documents, including confidential grand jury testimony on the violence at the prison.

“The PBA has a duty and responsibility to not only protect the constitutional rights of the Troopers who were forced to testify about their actions during the riot, but also to those who have had to recount the incident for 20 years because of criminal investigations and civil lawsuits,” Mungeer said. “The PBA has stood by them and will continue to stand by them in order to preserve the sanctity of confidential testimony during the grand jury process.”

Schneiderman responded to the action, saying he would try to protect the identities of witnesses. “Attica was a tragic event in the history of our state and our nation,” Damien LaVera, Schneiderman’s spokesman said. “It is time to make the Meyer report available so the public can have a better understanding of what happened and how we can prevent future tragedies, but is committed to doing so in a way that protects the names of witnesses who gave secret grand jury testimony.”

Joseph Heath, one of the attorneys who represented prisoners in a class action suit, said “the coverup continues.” The suit was settled in 2000 with a $12 million payment to the prisoners’ group. “What happened at Attica is not pretty, but we don’t progress as a society unless we know.”